Members of the prosecution and defense appeared in Oneida County Court on Tuesday for oral arguments in the case of Kaitlyn Conley, who is accused of murder in the July 2015 death of 60-year-old Mary Louise Yoder.

In motions, defense attorney Christopher Pelli requested the medical records of the victim’s husband, William Yoder, who co-owned the Whitesboro-based Chiropractic Family Care with the victim, as well as the couple’s “marriage counseling records” from the last 12 years; William Yoder’s phone records, texts and GPS data from the time of his wife’s death to present; and the same phone records from Kathleen Richmond, a sister of the victim, from Jan. 30, 2015, to Sept. 30, 2015.

While Pelli did not discuss the motions in details Tuesday, his written motion simply states Conley’s defense.

“The defense contends that Dr. William Yoder poisoned his wife on or about July 20, 2015, and that he had not only the means and opportunity but the motive as well,” Pelli wrote.

William Yoder could not be reached for comment. But Assistant District Attorney Laurie Lisi said Pelli's requests were based on "innuendo and hearsay."

In the motion, Pelli alleges that one of Mary Louise Yoder’s patients claimed she overheard the victim say that her husband had gout during a medical visit on July 20, 2015, just two days before her death. It's something that could provide an alternate source of colchicine, the drug authorities believe was used to kill Yoder, Pelli argues in the document.

He also states that one of the victim’s sisters claimed the couple’s marriage was “troubled." Pelli also claims that the defense has “several witnesses” that allege that William Yoder and Richmond began dating prior to Mary Louise Yoder’s death. William Yoder, according to Pelli's motion, stated that he and Richmond began dating in "late fall" of 2015.

Mary Louise Yoder's sister Sharon Mills, of Florida, wrote in a sworn deposition that she thought it was odd that William Yoder was included in a group email among some family members regarding an upcoming family reunion along with the request to "please keep it uneventful." When Mills saw that her sister was not included in a photo of the event, she reached out to Richmond and asked if their sister was OK, and was told that she was fine but had missed the photo. Mills wrote in her statement that she believed Richmond "is, and has for quite some time, been dating William Yoder, who is the man that I believe killed my sister Mary Yoder."

Assistant District Attorney Laurie Lisi detailed her issues with Pelli’s requests in court, at times calling them “collateral issues” that are not relevant to Yoder’s death. Her written answer to the motions was not immediately available Tuesday.

“Regarding the phone records, I just have to put on the record that Mr. Pelli’s reasoning for requesting them to me is nothing more than speculation, innuendo and hearsay,” Lisi said. “All three are not admissible in court. Notwithstanding that, because we’re here to seek the truth, I don’t have a problem if the court wants to get access to those records and review them in camera (in private chambers or when the public is excluded from the courtroom) and see if any of those records are relevant.”

Additionally, she said she reviewed the so-called “marriage counseling” records — which are more than 12 years old — and believes they have nothing to do with the case. She also said there are privacy issues involved, which would require certain parts be redacted.

Regarding William Yoder’s medical records, Lisi said the couple did not visit doctors on a regular basis and was “pretty sure” no medical records existed for Yoder during the time period requested. After a back-and-forth discussion, all parties came to the conclusion that Yoder would prepare information regarding prior doctor visits to establish a record.

Dwyer, who has taken over the case from the retired Judge Barry Donalty, acknowledged in court that he’s “about one-third” of the way through his reading of the grand jury minutes of the case, but stressed that there is a timeframe all parties have to adhere to.

“I just want to impress on everybody that today is Jan. 10 and we’re supposed to start this trial — we are going to start this trial — on Feb. 27 so we need to move quickly,” he said.

Follow @OD_Parker on Twitter or call her at 315-792-5063.

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